All About Wasps and Hornets Victor® Poison-Free® Yellow Jacket Magnet® Disposable Trap Controls
Wasps, yellow jackets and hornets can be found throughout North America in meadows, orchards, woodlands, playgrounds, cemeteries, and urban and suburban backyards. They vary in their nesting preferences. Although they all chew wood pulp to build their nests, yellow jackets generally locate their nests below the ground surface while hornets and other wasps build their large nests up in the trees. Giant hornets will also build their nests in attics or house walls.
Learn more about wasps and hornets:
Controlling Wasps and Hornets in Your Yard and Garden
Natural & Organic Controls
What?
Yellow jacket/Wasp traps and wasp and hornet aerosols containing pyrethrin, d-limonene, palmarosa oil or mint oil appear to be the most effective control methods for these insects.
How?
Pesticide-free traps contain food attractants instead of harmful chemicals.
These traps should be placed along the borders of your lawn. When checking on them, be very careful not to get stung. Carefully read and follow all instructions completely for safe and effective trap usage.
A non-poisonous aerosol spray that contains mint oil can be a very effective instant spot control product - and it has a pleasant mint scent!
Pyrethrin, d-limonene, and/or palmarosa oil sprays can also be used for instant spot control. In addition, they can be used to drench the nest 
or hive.
If you are attempting to spray a nest of wasps, be sure to wear a bee veil and very protective clothing which is closed at the cuff of pants and sleeves as well as the collar and belt areas so wasps cannot crawl under your clothes and sting you.
Spray from approximately 10-15 feet away or as far away as you can manage based on the position of the nest. Spray with the wind at your back. Carefully read and follow all instructions completely for safe and effective application.
When?
Once a trap is set up, it will take about 24 hours to fully lure wasps & yellow jackets, so plan ahead if you're having a backyard party or outdoor event.
When treating a full nest, spray aerosol solutions after dusk or before dawn since these insects are dormant at night.
Why Choose a Natural Solution?
Natural solutions break down quickly to their natural elements. They are preferable to chemical pesticides that leave residuals where they are sprayed causing long-term detrimental affects on the environment.
Natural Predators
What?
Birds and other insects eat wasps and hornets, helping to control their populations.
How?
Birds that eat both insects and birdseed may be able to be attracted to your yard through the use of birdfeeders.
When?
Place bird feeders in the yard at anytime throughout the year, although the main time for attracting birds in hopes they will also go after the wasps and hornets would be during the late spring and summer when these insects emerge and are active.
Environmental Controls
What?
Secured window screens and doors, tightly lidded garbage cans, and well-maintained orchards are all important in controlling wasps, whether they are yellow jackets, hornets or other types of wasps. Cold weather is a natural environmental control in itself, killing off the colony and possibly even the queen.
How?
Check window screens and doors to make sure they are secure so wasps will not be able to invade your home. Once inside the home, they can enter the walls or attic and either overwinter or build their nests depending on the time of year.
Garbage cans without lids firmly attached can be a huge source of attraction for yellow jackets. Make sure that your garbage cans are firmly covered.
Remove any fruits that have fallen from your fruit trees, being very careful not to step in or disturb any yellow jacket nests in the ground.
When?
Check windows, screens and doors in the spring and fall to check for nests or for overwintering female wasps. Every time you open and close your garbage can, make sure you have placed the lid on the can very firmly.
Pick up fruit when you find it on the ground under your fruit trees in your yard or orchard.
FAQs About Wasps and Hornets
Q: What’s the difference between a yellow jacket and a wasp?
A: Both are a type of social wasp, meaning they live in a colony. Yellow jackets are a group within the species social wasps. When we think of the term “wasp,” we are often thinking about the paper wasp, another type of social wasp.
Yellow jackets, incidently, are the more vicious of the two types, and are commonly found at picnics, campgrounds, and garbage cans at the end of summer in search of foods and sweets to substitute for their dwindling natural prey.
Q: How do we get rid yellow jackets in our yard? Our son's birthday party is next week.
A: Wasp and Hornet Sprays containing pyrethrins may be of help. Another option that can be effective in controlling these stinging pests are yellowjacket traps. They come in several styles, but basically contain a food-type bait that will attract the yellowjackets and when they enter the trap's container, they become trapped inside.
Read more about yellow jackets and wasps - see our section All About Wasps & Hornets: Facts.
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